101 CHL Players Selected In The 2013 NHL Draft

July 1, 2013, Newark, NJ (ISN) – The Canadian Hockey League today announced that 101 CHL players were selected in the seven rounds of the 2013 NHL Draft held June 30 in New Jersey representing nearly 48% of the 211 drafted players.

The 101 CHL players selected includes a record 22 players from the CHL chosen in the first round led by MasterCard Memorial Cup MVP Nathan MacKinnon of the Champion Halifax Mooseheads who became the seventh straight player from the CHL to be selected first overall when he was picked by the Colorado Avalanche. 22 first round picks, including eight from the Ontario Hockey League, eight from the Western Hockey League, and six players chosen from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, surpasses the league’s previous high of 21 CHL players chosen in the first round of the 2011 and 1998 NHL Entry Drafts.

CHL Player of the Year Jonathan Drouin of the Mooseheads was the third overall pick to the Tampa Bay Lightning and alongside MacKinnon became just the fifth pair of teammates to be selected in the top-three picks and second straight following Nail Yakupov and Alex Galchenyuk of the Sarnia Sting selected first and third respectively in the 2012 NHL Draft.

A total of 57 CHL players were selected in the first three rounds representing nearly 63% of the first 91 players chosen which matches the 1995 NHL Entry Draft for most CHL players selected in the opening three rounds of the draft.

Of the 101 CHL players selected, the OHL led the way with 37 players, followed by the WHL with 33 players, and the QMJHL with 31 players selected representing a modern draft record and their highest total since 2003 when 38 QMJHL players were picked in the nine-round draft process.

“On behalf of the CHL I would like to congratulate all of our players and their families celebrating this special day,” said CHL President David Branch. “The CHL development model is the best in the world and I would also like to congratulate all CHL teams and our coaching staffs who ensure that our league continues to be the number one supplier of talent to the NHL.”

49 different CHL teams produced NHL Draft picks including the OHL champion London Knights who led the CHL for a second straight season with six players selected including three first round picks featuring Bo Horvat, Max Domi, and Nikita Zadorov. Also from the OHL, the Guelph Storm had five players selected including first round pick Jason Dickinson. The QMJHL had three teams with four players selected including the league champion Mooseheads with first round picks MacKinnon and Drouin, the Rimouski Oceanic with first round picks Samuel Morin and Frederik Gauthier, and the Baie-Comeau Drakkar who had their best NHL Draft result in franchise history. In the WHL, the Kelowna Rockets had four players selected along with the WHL champion Portland Winterhawks who share the league lead for the fourth straight season and become the WHL’s all-time NHL Draft leader with 126 players selected since 1969 highlighted this year by first round pick Seth Jones.

All 30 NHL teams selected at least one CHL player led by the Winnipeg Jets with seven CHL players selected including first round pick Josh Morrissey of the Prince Albert Raiders, and followed by the Edmonton Oilers who chose six CHL players including first round pick Darnell Nurse of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. Six different NHL teams drafted five CHL players each including the Dallas Stars, Detroit Red Wings, Los Angeles Kings, and three Canadian teams such as the Calgary Flames with first round picks Sean Monahan of the Ottawa 67’s, Emile Poirier of the Gatineau Olympiques, and Morgan Klimchuk of the Regina Pats. The Montreal Canadiens also had five CHL players selected including second round pick and highest drafted goaltender Zachary Fucale of the Mooseheads, and the Vancouver Canucks with first round picks Bo Horvat of the London Knights and Hunter Shinkaruk of the Medicine Hat Tigers. The Ottawa Senators and Toronto Maple Leafs each selected three CHL players including first round picks Curtis Lazar of the Edmonton Oil Kings, and Frederik Gauthier of the Rimouski Oceanic respectively.

Last season, 99 CHL players were taken in the 2012 NHL Draft including 48 from the OHL, 32 from the WHL, and 19 from the QMJHL.